Sue Montague, NICS
Influenza struck hard in 2007 and resulted in the death of several children.
Too often considered a disease of the elderly or a harmless cold, influenza showed its real side with devastating consequences, all the more tragic because deaths from influenza are largely preventable.
Despite heightened public awareness, influenza continues to be responsible annually for 80,000 GP visits and 15,000 hospitalisations. In 2004, over 1,500 Australians died from influenza related complications and yet, immunisation rates for both at risk groups and health care workers have remained below 50 per cent.
The NHMRC's National Institute of Clinical Studies (NICS) identified this serious evidence-practice gap between the known effectiveness of influenza vaccination and current vaccination rates and developed the Fight Flu campaign and <www.fightflu.com.au> website in 2005.
As part of this campaign, NICS researched the barriers to immunisation and worked with health professionals to increase their own vaccination rates and help them identify and reach their at risk patients.
While awareness of the dangers of influenza may have increased, the barriers to immunization have continued to keep rates low amongst at risk groups under 65 years of age. A lack of certainty about who is at risk and a belief that vaccinations either don't work or give influenza are still common.
As well as these personal barriers, rates amongst health care workers are lowest when vaccination is considered a low organisational priority, managerial support is lacking and access to convenient vaccinations is limited.
The Fight Flu campaign is about to enter its third year. As well as redeveloping the website <www.fightflu.com.au>, NICS will again be targeting health care workers and at risk groups under 65 years of age to prompt them to take the influenza vaccination message seriously, with a particular emphasis on raising awareness amongst Indigenous populations.
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